Lords of Nature
by JohnPeacekeeper
Summary: With the demise of Ziz, the final encounter between Leviathan and Behemoth's Flame Haze, Khamsin, is inevitable. Meanwhile, Leanan-sidhe seeks the key to restoring that which is most precious to her. Spin-off to 'Eternal Alliance'. Khamsin x Leanan-sidhe
1. Prologue: History of the Brothers

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Shakugan no Shana.

**Note: **This is a short spin-off to _Shakugan no Shana: Eternal Destiny._ Please review.

* * *

**Prologue: **History of the Brothers

Many ages ago, before the Snake of the Festival had been sealed away through the combined efforts of Alastor and an army of Flame Haze, there was another Crimson God, one who held absolute power over the elements of the Earth.

Her name was Gaia, but her full title was the Hand of Eden.

Out of all the other Crimson Gods, she was the only one to bear children, and three of them at that. They were all born on the same day, and each commanded one element.

Ziz was the most persistent and stubborn. He was also the most impatient and unpredictable. These characteristics mirrored his element: wind. He had wings many times larger than his own body, and with these wings, the Crimson Lord was not only swift, but a single flap could create a strong hurricane.

There was also Leviathan. Like his element, water, he was the most capable of adapting to any situation. He was also manipulative and clever.

Then there was Behemoth. Out of all his brothers, he was the toughest and most patient. He was also the most peace-loving, but his ambitions were dwarfed by those of his kin.

When it came to pass that their mother Gaia initiated her plan to bring peace to the world by altering the very landscape of the Earth, she was confronted by the Flame of Heaven Alastor and the Snake of the Festival, who had forged a temporary alliance with each other.

After a long battle that could have very well ended the world, Gaia was defeated and stripped of her power before being sealed in another dimension. A dimension the Snake of the Festival had created for just that occasion.

However, before she had gone to battle, she planted an Unrestricted Method in each of her children that, when broken through death, would grant the power and immortality of a Crimson God to whoever remained of the three.

And so, after her fall, Leviathan and Ziz battled against each other in order to be the successor of their mother. But Behemoth was not like them. Instead of taking the offensive against them, he decided to only defend himself or avoid conflict altogether. And eventually, he retreated to the Crimson Realm.

After a while, Leviathan and Ziz realized that their brother had fled from their contest, and in doing so, would be most likely to be the winner. So they called a truce, and decided to hunt him down first before settling things with each other once and for all.

Shortly before the second fall of the Snake of the Festival, Ziz had allied himself with Bal Masque and fought against the Flame Haze of his brother, Behemoth, who had promised to surrender his life if the said Flame Haze was defeated.

However, in a battle that raged above the rooftops of a parallel copy of Misaki City and ended on the ground, Ziz was the one that was destroyed, and the Flame Haze, Khamsin Nbh'w, who appeared to be nothing more than a young, dark-skinned child, emerged as the victor.

Not long after that, Khamsin met the daughter of his other brother, Leviathan. She had acted as a spy for her father against the Snake of the Festival to make sure that the Crimson God would not ruin his plans. Her name was Lorelei, the Caressing Melody, who had the appearance of a blue-skinned sea nymph with long red hair. Although, when she masqueraded as a human, only her hair was consistent.

Now, after so many years of avoiding battle, Behemoth had no other choice but to settle things with his other brother, Leviathan, or the elements of the world would suffer imbalance.

Accompanying him and his Flame Haze on their quest were Lorelei, who would take them to her father for their final duel, and Leanan-sidhe, the Spiral Organ, whose true form was that of a young girl with short lavender hair. She had always been searching for a means to restore something very precious to her, and may have found the answer in the journey that lied ahead.

As they boarded a bus that would take them outside Misaki City, Shana, Yuji, Hecate and the rest of their comrades saw them off. They would see them again, if all went well. But Khamsin could not help but feel a little worried, even if he did not show it.

Somehow, Leanan-sidhe knew how he felt and put her hand on his. "I have never entrusted myself to anyone so much before," she said. "But I have faith in you."


	2. Chapter 1: Over Sky and Sea

**Chapter 1:** Over Sky and Sea

The road to Atlantis and Leviathan would involve hopping from Japan to another country where few, if no, Flame Haze and Crimson Denizens were likely to be present. Like his contractor Behemoth, Khamsin wanted to avoid any conflict as much as possible, for even a single encounter with either could lead to more unnecessary battles.

After all, he was still a Flame Haze, and still considered a mortal enemy to Denizens, despite his present company. On top of that, he, and the rest of the Flame Haze that were involved in the recent fall of the Snake of the Festival, were branded deserters by Outlaw for not only allying themselves with, but also founding, the newly-formed neutral faction in Misaki City.

He and Lorelei had already plotted their course a week before they had left the city. The small group had gotten off the bus at an airport. And after booking a flight, they stayed together in one of the waiting areas.

A human Torch passed by them, its flame close to death. It quickly vanished, and ceased to exist. Rather, it never existed, except to those with knowledge of the Crimson Realm. Its body turned into a wisp of bluish flame that travelled into Leanan-sidhe's open hand.

"Even though Lamies is dead, the Corpse Collector is not," the Denizen muttered to herself.

She noticed that Khamsin was looking at her. "Does it disturb you?" she inquired.

"Not really," the Flame Haze replied passively. "Your actions don't cause any distortions, since his purpose as a shock absorber for the gap his original left in the balance was close to its end. The damage done to the balance should have recovered by then."

"You're really serious when it comes to the balance, aren't you?" Leanan-sidhe noted.

"And this way," Khamsin continued, "he still has a use: keeping you alive a little longer. You have the right idea."

"If that was your attempt at praise, thank you," Leanan-sidhe replied.

Lorelei sighed. "You two sound like old people," she said.

"I believe the term Margery Daw used was 'geezer'," Khamsin said. "I really don't care."

He mounted his elbow on his leg and rested his head on his hand. "And in a sense, it's true."

"How old are you anyway?" Lorelei asked.

"I don't remember," Khamsin replied. "It's not important."

"And just what is important?" Leanan-sidhe asked. "All you seem to care about is the balance, even when you helped form the new group. Don't you have any goal or desires?"

"I used to, but it was a childish thing," said Khamsin. "Protecting the balance is all that matters, and nothing more. When I helped found the new group, it was because I believe that with Bal Masque disbanded, Outlaw and Flame Haze would become the most dominant force in the world. It is not good that most Denizens feed on the existences of humans, but it is equally as bad if the Flame Haze, in their hatred for Denizens, would wipe them out, leaving only those who contracted with them."

"Then why did you try to help me restore my painting if it was so unimportant to you?" Leanan-sidhe said.

"I'm not sure why myself," Khamsin replied. "I guess I just respected your perseverance. You, like most other Denizens, would stop at nothing to reach your goal, but instead of damaging the balance, you help protect it. I am grateful for your inventing of the Fuzetsu."

"That was by accident," Leanan-sidhe admitted. "So in the end, even your respect for me is based on my part in aiding the balance."

There was a hint of bitterness in her tone. But Khamsin made no attempt to ease her.

"So those words you said to me on New Year's Eve, were they a lie?" Leanan-sidhe said.

Khamsin did not respond, for he knew not how. At that time, the balance was on the brink of collapsing completely, and he had felt powerless to prevent it. Could those words have come from his own hidden feelings?

A cold silence followed. After some time, it was broken again.

"So, what was your goal?" Lorelei asked the Flame Haze.

"It's not important," Khamsin said.

Lorelei crossed her arms. "You're no fun," she said.

Khamsin sighed, and after a while made an effort to be more sociable. "How about you?" he asked. "How old are you?"

"Khamsin, never mention a woman's age," said Leanan-sidhe, still a little bitter.

"That's right," Lorelei added. "It's a secret."

She winked seductively, and Khamsin turned away to hide a faint blush.

Lorelei giggled. "What's with that reaction?" she said. "Just a moment ago, you were this old geezer in a boy's body."

"He is inexperienced in receiving such things from the opposite gender, despite having seen hundreds of years, for they are rare to him," Behemoth explained through his bracelet-like vessel on the Flame Haze's wrist. "And besides, he is still a boy."

"So you _do _have expressions and feelings," Leanan-sidhe said. "Maybe you're not as cold as I thought, but I could be wrong."

"Just what is your problem with me?" Khamsin said, his voice beginning to rise.

"Why do you even care?" Leanan-sidhe responded in the same manner. "All that matters is the balance, right?"

"And just what is wrong with protecting the balance? All you care about is that painting."

"Well at least I have something to hold onto. The only reason you refuse to die is because the balance will somehow suffer from it."

Behemoth sighed. "How did it come to this?" he grumbled.

"Something to hold onto? You're obsessed with it," Khamsin continued. "Just what is so special about restoring that insignificant little painting?"

Suddenly, Leanan-sidhe's hand moved in a swift blur and slapped the Flame Haze on the cheek. Khamsin was about to retaliate, when Behemoth stopped him.

"Calm yourself!" he bellowed. Although it was loud, ordinary humans were unable to hear it. "Nothing good will come out of this."

Leanan-sidhe turned away and left without another word.

"W-wait," Khamsin said, stretching his hand toward her, but she had already gone off somewhere.

"Don't worry about her," Lorelei said. "She won't be leaving us anytime soon. When our flight is here we can contact her with the cellphones the Seeking Researcher gave us." Since Marcosias was far, far away, the contacting bookmarks were useless, for the Crimson Lord acted like their relay tower.

Khamsin withdrew his hand. "What did I do wrong?" he asked himself.

"You don't understand women at all, do you?" said Lorelei. "I guess you really are still just a boy."

SnSnSnSnS

During the whole flight to Morocco, Leanan-sidhe remained silent. In the meantime, Khamsin reviewed their course with a world map he had taken with him. Between them sat Lorelei, who was forced to endure the cold silence between the Spiral Organ and the Flame Haze yet again.

Several hours passed, and still, neither of the three had spoken to one another. By this time, a very bored Lorelei had fallen asleep.

"Lorelei?" Khamsin said, not realizing or ignoring that she was sleeping.

The Denizen woke up anyway. "What is it?" she asked.

"What's your father like?"

Lorelei smirked. "Planning ahead I see," she said. "Don't you think that's a little unfair?"

"What? No," Khamsin responded. "If I wanted to know how his usual battle tactics, I could just ask Behemoth. It's just, I want to know what kind of a father he was to you."

"He loves me dearly," Lorelei answered. "Especially when my mother died, he had a hard time leaving me alone. He never allowed me go on Power of Existence feeding sprees alone, even with the powers I had inherited from him. I was strong, but he still saw me as a fragile girl."

"Your father never sent you to spy on Bal Masque, did he?" Khamsin deduced. "You wanted to prove to him that you were stronger than he thought, by either thwarting the Snake of the Festival's plans, or hunting down his brother Ziz."

"In the end, I didn't have to directly do either," Lorelei said. "But when he learns that I at least _survived_ a battle with the Snake of the Festival, he should give me some credit."

She looked at the Flame Haze sympathetically. "Didn't you have a father?" she asked.

"I think I did," Khamsin replied. "But that was many, many years ago. I've forgotten how it was to have a father, as he and everyone else had forgotten me."

"I'm sorry, asking you such a sensitive question," Lorelei said.

"It doesn't matter," Khamsin said. "All that is long behind me. Such is the fate of a Flame Haze, to be able to live forever yet be forgotten by everyone. Whatever happens in my life holds no meaning to anyone else. We exist only to protect the balance."

"Do you really believe that?" Leanan-sidhe said suddenly. "If there's anything I learned from the Mystes of the Reiji Maigo, it's that even if you are forgotten once, you can be remembered again by others, who could never forget. That's one of the reasons why he's so close to the Flaming-Haired Blazing-Eyed Hunter and the Supreme Throne."

"Just what is the relationship between you two?" Lorelei asked, suddenly changing the topic. "One moment, you're really friendly, then in another, you're fighting."

Khamsin and Leanan-sidhe looked at each other and gave the same reply.

"We're just old acquaintances."

"Really now?" Lorelei mused. "I may not be even half as old as you two, but at least I'm not single-minded. You two are actually pretty close, that's why you can argue, even at your age."

Leanan-sidhe and Khamsin merely shook their heads lightly. "You don't understand at all, do you?" said the former.

"We're total opposites, we fight because we believe the other is false," said Khamsin.

Before they knew it, the pilot reported that they would be landing soon.

SnSnSnSnS

Before sunrise, they, with the help of a Fuzetsu, hijacked a small ship from a dock in Morocco that could take them to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Leanan-sidhe, with her mastery of her own invented Unrestricted Method, had excluded the boat they needed from the effects of the Fuzetsu, allowing them to take it far into the ocean without leaving a trace.

After making their getaway, Leanan-sidhe remotely dispersed the Fuzetsu she had created miles away. Then she went to the ship's stem, where she found Khamsin. He was reviewing his map once again.

"Are you sure it's alright to just take this ship?" she asked him.

"Lorelei, angle the boat three degrees to port," the Flame Haze said out loud.

"I think I would know the ocean I hunted in for seafaring humans," said the Denizen, who was at the ship's wheel.

"It's necessary," Khamsin replied to Leanan-sidhe.

"Typical of a Flame Haze," the Denizen said as she sat down beside him. "Don't you care at all for the work those humans had to go through just to afford this ship?"

"Would you rather have hired them and led them to their doom? We couldn't afford this either, but we need it. If we don't confront Leviathan, their lives would be lost in the disasters following imbalance in nature."

"Yet they won't know about that."

"It doesn't matter, they don't need to. This boat, and their work to get it, would be forgotten anyway, like everything else one does or gains."

"Is that from experience?" Leanan-sidhe asked.

"Why do you care about those humans anyway?" Khamsin asked, trying to change the subject. He was also a little curious.

"I know what it's like to lose something important," Leanan-sidhe replied, staring towards the horizon before them as the sun climbed up, out of the wide sea.

The Flame Haze took his eyes away from his map and turned them towards Leanan-sidhe. It did not matter that she was at least hundreds of years old, she, like Hecate, was still young in appearance. And as the sun rose, the beauty of her face was illuminated.

"Is something wrong?" she asked.

"It's nothing," Khamsin said, looking back at his map. "What did you lose?"

The Spiral Organ got back on her feet. "You have a past you don't want to share," she said. "So do I."

With that, she went down into the boat's cabin.

"Khamsin, our life from here on will be more difficult than ever before," Behemoth said. "I believe that it is time that we stop acting alone and work more closely with our allies, particularly the Spiral Organ."

"Because of her abilities?" Khamsin responded. "Or to make sure she doesn't disrupt the balance?"

"Neither. Do it because you respect her, and also so you can learn from her. And try to trust her. Even with all your years, there are still things you have not learned, things even I cannot guide you with. However, I believe you may learn many things from her. You might even find a new meaning in your life, to replace your shattered dream from long, long ago."

"A new meaning?" Khamsin pondered.

He lay back on the steel platform of the boat, his head resting on his arms.

"Behemoth, what are you going to do if you gain the power and immortality of a Crimson God from defeating your brothers?" he asked.

"I will remain with you," his contractor said. "And whatever you choose to do with that power, I will go along with it."

"That's good to hear. I don't want that much power to end up with one who would abuse it. That is enough for me."

"How do you know my brother would abuse it?"

"Because power can influence even the purest. Just remember what happened to Yuji Sakai not so long ago. I however, have nothing to lose or gain, so it should be safe with us."

"But are you happy with being an empty shell for thousands of years?"

Khamsin rolled to his side. "I'm not sure if I can answer that," he said.

SnSnSnSnS

Days passed until they made it to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. From then, it was only a matter of time until they would receive a greeting from Leviathan.

The waves suddenly crashed more violently, thrashing the boat around, as a gargantuan being with wings, massive arms and a tentacle-beard rose out of the waters.


	3. Chapter 2: Welcome to Atlantis

**Chapter 2: **Welcome to Atlantis

"Cthulhu?!" Lorelei exclaimed as the towering beast looked down on them. Since they were in the middle of the ocean, casting a Fuzetsu was completely unnecessary.

"Is he a servant of your father?" Leanan-sidhe asked the other Denizen.

"One of them," she answered. "He's a Crimson Lord known as the Maelstrom of Murder, Cthulhu."

"With good reason, apparently," Behemoth observed.

"Your father is looking everywhere for you," Cthulhu said with a grim, menacing voice. "Even now, he wanders the world in search of you. Yet here you are, in the company of a Flame Haze. Do not worry, I will take you back."

As he raised his fist, Lorelei yelled. "Wait! I'm not--!"

But her words were cut off as the massive fist smashed into the water. At the last second, Leanan-sidhe had released a bright flash of light in his direction, causing him to miss them narrowly. The waves created by the impact shook the boat and nearly overturned it.

As the small crew balanced themselves, Cthulhu raised his fist again.

"He never did listen to me," Lorelei grumbled as she balanced herself. "He won't stop once he begins to start fighting or killing."

Beside her, she saw Khamsin take out a Hougu in the shape of a mallet. It was a souvenir he had gotten from his friends in Misaki City.

"Leanan-sidhe, try to confuse him. Time your spells with my attacks," the Flame Haze said. "Lorelei, take the wheel and make sure this boat stays intact."

"You're not actually thinking of fighting him?" Lorelei said.

"Watch out!" Leanan-sidhe warned as she cast another spell and created a barrier in front of the boat, which was smashed through with a punch from Cthulhu. However, it gave Lorelei enough time to summon a wave that pushed the boat out of harms way.

"Even with a Hougu, you couldn't possibly defeat him without your element nearby," Lorelei said.

"Which is why we need you two to help us," Behemoth said.

"If we cannot reason with him, incapacitating him should be the next option," Khamsin said.

Cthulhu drew back his arm again. As he did, Khamsin leapt off the boat, straight to him. Cthulhu threw his fist at his flying enemy, who swung his hammer upward. In mid-swing, the once tiny hammer changed size and became a massive, heavy sledge-hammer. The momentum from the weight and the swing allowed the Flame Haze to backflip abruptly in midair. As the hammer shrank again, he landed on Cthulhu outstretched arm.

Khamsin jumped and brought down his hammer on the monster's elbow joint, enlarging it once again in mid-swing. The colossal beast roared in pain as he clutched his damaged arm. As it did, Khamsin leapt towards his face.

Cthulhu sent several tentacles his way, but before they could reach him, a bright light shone from behind him, on a spell insignia cast by the Spiral Organ. The light stunned Cthulhu and forced him to shut his eyes. This not only allowed Khamsin to evade the tentacles, but also gave him a chance to smash his enemy's face in with his hammer.

Cthulhu fell back a bit, and Khamsin continued to hop from one part of his body to another, bludgeoning as he went. And with Leanan-sidhe's support, he never once suffered a hit.

But no matter how many blows Khamsin landed on him, Cthulhu would not go down, and each of the blunt damage done to him seemed to recover quickly. Before the Flame Haze could attack another area of his massive, scaly body, Cthulhu closed his humungous wings over himself, trapping him.

"Even if you are a Flame Haze, you won't last too long without breathing air," Cthulhu said. Khamsin was trapped in-between his scaly body and crushing wings. He struggled to break out, but the Crimson Lord's hold was too strong.

"Let him go Cthulhu! He's for my father to kill!" Lorelei yelled as she lashed at Cthulhu with a whip made of water, but he did not even feel it.

She continued to strike at him with blades and whips of water, and Leanan-sidhe tried whatever she could think of, but it was no use. In just a few more minutes, Khamsin would pass out or even die from suffocation.

"Release him," said a tall, blue-green man with long seaweed green hair that rose out of the water next to them. In his hand was a long, three-pronged trident.

"Chilling Mist, Neptune," Lorelei said.

From this trident, the newcomer fired a bolt of electricity that shocked Cthulhu and forced him to let go of Khamsin, who gasped for breath and plunged into the sea, still gripping his weapon. Before Cthulhu could make a move, Neptune fired a cold beam that froze his limbs in thick ice.

_A master of positive and negative Power of Existence,_ Leanan-sidhe thought. She looked up at the incapacitated Cthulhu. _And an unstoppable beast. If these are just his underlings, then how powerful is Leviathan himself._

She watched as Neptune recovered a half-conscious Khamsin and put him back on the boat. In spite of what had happened, Behemoth's vessel was still firmly on his wrist.

_Do they have a chance, especially when their enemies have the home advantage?_

Khamsin coughed and Leanan-sidhe offered him a towel. He looked up at the newcomer, who stood next to him on the boat.

"I owe you my thanks," he said.

"Don't misunderstand," Neptune said, "we are only keeping you alive until our Lord Leviathan returns, for only he shall be the one to destroy you."

He looked up to Cthulhu, who seemed to calm down. With a moderate stream of fire from his trident, Neptune thawed out the ice that held him, allowing him to break free.

"I'm surprised of you," Neptune continued. "I expected much more from the one who killed Ziz, who I must admit is capable of defeating both of us, even together. You are weaker than I thought."

"He only lost because he is nowhere near his element, while you are surrounded in yours," Leanan-sidhe said, in an effort to defend the Flame Haze.

But Neptune ignored her. "As unworthy as you are, you must still face my lord," he said. "And I must at least commend you for coming here, to your doom."

"I have no intention of dying," Khamsin said defiantly.

Neptune pointed his trident at his chest. "Then you will come with us to Atlantis, now," he ordered him. "Lorelei…"

"Let me take care of it," Lorelei said as she waved her hands over the edge of the boat and created a large bubble that could contain at least five people. "Step in. Don't worry, it won't burst, and there should be enough air."

Khamsin, as a gentleman should, helped Leanan-sidhe into the bubble then followed behind. The others had no need of it, as they were could swim extremely well and could breathe underwater. Lorelei made sure the bubble could keep up with her in their quick descent.

"Back there, why did you justify my defeat?" Khamsin asked Leanan-sidhe without even looking at her.

"Because it was the truth," the Denizen replied. "Did I insult you?"

"My pride was hurt. more or less," Khamsin said. "Throughout thousands of years as a Flame Haze, I have almost never lost a battle. But, I guess you're right, I was at a major disadvantage earlier."

"How are you going to defeat Leviathan without your element?"

"Don't worry about that. It is not a valid duel for the title of Hand of Eden unless the contenders are willing to bet their lives, are in their full power and can access their element."

But Leanan-sidhe was still a little worried. "Even so, did you not have much difficulty against Ziz alone?" she said. On the boat, before the battle with Cthulhu, the Flame Haze had recounted the duel with Ziz in detail to the Spiral Organ, simply to pass the time. He had also told her the reason for the conflict between the three brothers. "You could have died that time."

"And Ziz would have forcefully drawn me out of the Crimson Realm through my vessel to deliver the final blow that would take him one step closer to becoming a Crimson God," Behemoth said.

"You killed Ziz, so wouldn't that mean his powers would be yours now?" Leanan-sidhe asked.

"No," Behemoth answered. "One of us will only be able to gain full access to another brother's powers once all competition is destroyed in honorable duels."

Khamsin looked around and noticed something peculiar about the area around their path of descent.

"There are no fish at all," he observed.

"We consume their Power of Existence when there are no travelling humans," Lorelei explained nearby. "They are barely as sustaining as a human's. Even a hundred fish, sharks, whales or even giant squids put together will barely compare with what a single human can provide. Size never matters when it comes to consuming Power of Existence. But as least we stay alive."

"Why are Leviathan and his servants in hiding?" Khamsin inquired. "If he's after me and Ziz, why doesn't he send out his scouts to find us?"

"It was just a few months ago that we had to return here. Bal Masque had been going all out, forcing Denizens all around the world into their army for a final assault on Misaki City. Only an extremely small number of us are still loyal to my father. The rest either died in Misaki City or decided to desert us. Good thing none of them found out that I ran away to spy on Bal Masque."

After about an hour, the sunken city of Atlantis came into view. Over it was a translucent membrane in the shape of a dome, through which the five beings passed through. Once inside, their feet touched dry, solid ground.

"I will send word to Lord Leviathan of your return," Neptune told Lorelei, then turned to Khamsin, "and of your challenge. Until he arrives, you are free to find a place to stay in this large city. You may also prepare yourself for your upcoming duel wherever you like."

With that, everyone went their separate ways.

While Leanan-sidhe was searching the city for any Hougus, particularly the Lawbreaker, and Lorelei was attending to her own business, Khamsin found himself looking over a massive, deep pond in the middle of the city.

"This is where Sereiden used to be," Behemoth said. "No doubt Hecate had used her powers to lift it up into the sky before sinking this entire land."

"And sometime afterwards, Leviathan made this place his base," Khamsin deduced, "although he left this crater undrained."

"It has been used not only as a training area, but a proving ground as well," said a familiar menacing voice. "A weak Flame Haze such as yourself doesn't deserve to stand here."

"Cthulhu," Khamsin said aloud as the gigantic Crimson Lord emerged from the ruins of the city from one side and stepped into the pond. The Flame Haze could sense the Killing Intent still burning in him. "You want to continue what you had started earlier?"

"No one who I have ever decided to kill has ever lived to see another day," Cthulhu said. "I intend to hold to that reputation."

"Won't Leviathan be furious at you?"

"Then I will just have to kill him too," Cthulhu said, full of arrogance.

He flapped his great wings and sent a tidal wave towards Khamsin, who brought a sturdy pillar up from the ground to protect himself.

With surprising speed, Cthulhu closed the space between himself and the Flame Haze. Before the Crimson Lord slammed his huge fist, Khamsin sensed the Killing Intent and jumped aside. Following through, Cthulhu swung the same arm at the Flame Haze.

Khamsin quickly brought up another pillar of stone from beneath himself to avoid the attack. And just before Cthulhu smashed it to pieces, he jumped off it with a backflip. He took another leap backwards to add more distance between himself and his enemy.

"Stop dodging and fight me!" Cthulhu said, full of bloodlust.

"Patience," Khamsin muttered.

Cthulhu leaned forward and threw a punch. Instead of evading, Khamsin stood his ground and raised his hands towards the massive fist. From the ruins around them, many stones and rocks intercepted the attack and covered onto the Crimson Lord's arm.

Gesturing with a sweep of his arms, Khamsin commanded the stones to force his enemy's arm aside, leaving him open to attack. The Flame Haze brought up a sharp cone of rock and, hitting it with an elbow, launched it at him.

The sharp rock impaled Cthulhu's shoulder deeply, rendering it almost useless. The Crimson Lord growled in pain.

"Excellent shot," Behemoth said to his Flame Haze.

"I was aiming for his head," Khamsin responded without taking his eyes off his foe.

Cthulhu angrily spread his wings, then attempted to trap the Flame Haze like he did before. But Khamsin easily saw it coming and blocked them with two tall pillars. Cthulhu then attacked with his tentacle beard extending.

Khamsin reacted by sweeping his leg on the ground around him. Thanks to Behemoth's affinity for earth, the Flame Haze was able to call up a large, thick dust cloud. He knew his enemy could still sense his presence, but he would not see his counterattack.

When the tentacles searched for the Flame Haze through the dist cloud, they suddenly stopped moving altogether. As the dust cleared, Cthulhu saw that the bundle of appendages had all been caught under a gigantic boulder. Before he could do anything to free them, Khamsin came at it from the side, wielding a stone cleaver five times his size. Hacking at the tentacles a few times with enormous strength provided by his contractor, he managed to cut them off before his weapon fell apart and crumbled. The severed, boneless limbs vanished in flame.

Furious, Cthulhu threw a punch with his other fist. Khamsin jumped away in time, and the attack destroyed the boulder he had used to pin down his foe's tentacles.

Following his punch, Cthulhu tried to grab his enemy, but his hand was stopped by a boulder that Khamsin had called up and thrown at it.

With his opponent's arm momentarily stunned, Khamsin compressed several rocks together to form a broad, sharp lance. He launched the weapon at his enemy. This time, it struck Cthulhu in the eye. The Crimson Lord roared again.

"You hit him that time," Behemoth said.

"I was trying to take out his other arm," said Khamsin.

"Even after all these years, your ranged accuracy still needs improvement," Behemoth noted. "Fortunately, that duel with Ziz was close-ranged and we had a lot of material to work with."

"But you're right, we'll need to improve my aim if we are to defeat Leviathan," Khamsin concurred.

In spite of the severe damage done to him, Cthulhu continued to fight. In fact, the mere thought of him losing angered him and spurred him on even more.

"Let us end this," Khamsin said, seeing that his enemy had only one fate.

The Flame Haze ran towards Cthulhu head on, calling many rocks of various sizes as he went. By the time he and the mammoth Crimson Lord clashed, Khamsin was completely covered in stone armor that made him ten times bigger.

Cthulhu hurled another punch at him. The attack was full of his rage and killing intent, but the Flame Haze managed to catch it with both stone-covered hands.

Pushing the arm aside, Khamsin hastily advanced. Pushing his and Behemoth's strength and power in a single charge, he leapt forward and tackled the large stone spike that still protruded from his enemy's skull.

As Khamsin landed on the ground, the remains of his armor, which had shattered upon impact, fell around him. A moment later, the limp body of the Maelstrom of Murder Cthulhu fell backwards before bursting into flame.


	4. Chapter 3: The Dead and Forgotten

**Chapter 3:** The Dead and Forgotten

Some days after Khamsin's arrival at Atlantis, Leviathan returned. He had the appearance of a wise and strong king in his late years. He had a broad white beard and silvery gray hair. He also wore a sea blue suit that looked like it was made for a high ranking naval officer.

Khamsin, Neptune and Lorelei met with him as he entered the sunken city.

"Welcome back, milord Leviathan, the Unbreakable Crushing Maelstrom," Neptune greeted.

But Leviathan paid him no heed. For a long time, he and Khamsin eyed each other, gauging the other's strength based on appearance and stance.

"We'll have our match tomorrow," Leviathan said coldly. "I hope you've lived your life enough until you die then."

Khamsin continued to just look at him withy an icy stare. Leviathan ignored it and turned to Lorelei.

"Welcome back father," she said. Suddenly, she was struck on the cheek by a swift hand.

"Do you know how much I worried about you?" Leviathan said. "Going off to fight Bal Masque on your own, what were you thinking?"

"But I succeeded in stopping them," Lorelei responded.

"No, you didn't. That group in Japan would have been able to defeat Bal Masque even without your help," said Leviathan. He noticed that Khamsin took his leave and was already some distance away. "However, I have to give you credit for bringing him here."

SnSnSnS

Khamsin found Leanan-sidhe sitting by the wide lake where Sereiden used to be. She seemed tired.

"Up to now, you are still searching for that Hougu?" said the Flame Haze. The Denizen nodded.

"If only the Specialist of Everything had allowed me to bring their Treasure Hunter Hougu, I would have found it a long time ago," she said.

"So you resorted to every tracking spell you knew," Khamsin said. "Now is the only time you've rested since we got here, isn't it?"

Leanan-sidhe nodded again. "Atlantis is too large a city," she said. "It's even bigger than Misaki City."

They were silent for a while. Khamsin noticed that the Denizen's hands were dirty and bruised. She had probably been digging through ruins with nothing but her bare hands.

"Why are you going through so much just for a mere painting?" he asked.

"How many times are you going to ask that?" Leanan-sidhe responded.

"Until I understand why it drives you so much, even after many, many years have passed."

Leanan-sidhe sighed. "Very well, I will tell you," she said. "But in return, you must answer my question afterwards."

"It's a deal."

Leanan-sidhe leaned back and looked up towards the deep dark sea, held back from pouring over them by a translucent membrane.

"Khamsin, have you ever been in love?" she asked him.

"I can't say that I have," Khamsin replied. "Is that your reason?"

"You could say that," Leanan-sidhe said. "A long time ago, in my travels, I met a human. He was a painter, and a very good one at that." She giggled lightly. "At that time, I thought he was very strange for a human. He suddenly approached me, a stranger in his town, and just confessed there and then, saying that I inspired him and brightened his world. I was still young at that time, even for a Denizen, so I reacted the same way that a normal girl would."

She recalled the times she blushed and became flustered over that one human boy, as well as the moments they had shared together.

"It was the first time someone ever had any feelings for me," she continued. "Soon, I found myself falling for him as well. But even though I loved him, I never told him what I was, and I kept him in the dark about the truth of the world. And so, for a time, we were happy together. But…"

She bowed her head. "One day, he saw me consuming a human for Power of Existence," she said. "I could never forget his reaction when he saw that. It was like he was looking upon a horrible monster. I couldn't bear seeing the furious look on his face, so I ran away. Afterwards, I realized that it was wrong to feed on living humans for Power of Existence, not just because it disrupted the balance, but mainly because they had lives too."

"Is that why you don't consume humans anymore?"

"Yes, it's the main reason," Leanan-sidhe answered. "I haven't seen him again since then, and I wandered the world aimlessly. Soon, I was captured by a powerful Crimson Lord, and later, I was forcibly conscripted into the group of the Coffin Weaver Asiz."

"And they used you as a tool," said Khamsin, who knew that small part of the story.

"I don't wish to discuss that," Leanan-sidhe said. "After a time, I met Alastor and Mathilde Saint-Omer, the Flaming-Haired Blazing-Eyed Hunter before Shana. They told me that the man I loved had died of old age, but before he had died, he made a painting of me. I found a new goal in my life, but first I had to help them defeat the one who held me captive."

"Eventually, I found the painting, but it was damaged beyond all repair," she continued. "Since then, I've been wandering the world, gathering Power of Existence from dying Torches and seeking a way to restore it."

"So you're doing all this because you want to restore something precious?" Khamsin said.

"Not just that," said Leanan-sidhe with a worried expression. "I want to know how he saw me. I want to know if he still saw me as a bloodthirsty monster that devours humans."

"And what would you do once this goal was done?" Khamsin asked.

"If what I see in the painting is not a monster, then I can die happy," Leanan-sidhe said. "That end is what keeps me going."

_Such a sad past_, Khamsin thought._ But even after all that has happened to her, she can still summon the strength to keep going towards her goal. Is such a thing as love, even for one who is dead, really that great and powerful?_

Silence followed, until Leanan-sidhe spoke again.

"Now it's my turn," she said.

"Very well," Khamsin said. "We did make a deal after all."

"Have you ever had a goal in your life, something you wanted no matter what?"

SnSnSnS

Leviathan sat alone on his throne at one end of the city. In his hands was a conical lance that seemed to be made of ivory. It was a battle-use Hougu, but to him, it was more than that. Its true name was Valkyrie Mercy, but what Leviathan had called it was simply…

"Marie," the Crimson Lord sighed sadly. He felt Lorelei's presence as she approached him.

The Caressing Melody noticed him stroking the fine lance. "You still miss her, don't you?" she said to him.

"She was a short-lived Mystes, even though I provided her with Power of Existence," Leviathan said. "Many would find this lance to be more valuable than her. But to me, she is more precious than even the Reiji Maigo."

"How did mother die?" Lorelei asked. "I wasn't with her at the time, so I don't know. You have always avoided telling me. but this may be my last chance to know."

"It won't," Leviathan said proudly.

"But the Flame Haze even killed Ziz."

"Ziz was a fool, he deserved it," Leviathan said. Suddenly, he reconsidered.

"While she went on land, she was caught in a duel between a Crimson Denizen and a Flame Haze, both of which wanted this wretched Hougu," he said. "They killed her and cut her open, then fought amongst themselves. When I found out what happened, I destroyed them both, and made sure their deaths were long and painful."

"That's why you never let me out on land," Lorelei said. Leviathan bowed his head.

"If only she had just stayed with me in the sea, where it was safe," he lamented as tears fell from his eyes.

SnSnSnS

"Before I became a Flame Haze, I was a prince," Khamsin began. "Like most boys of my time, I dreamed of becoming a great warrior. Then one day, I met Behemoth. When he told me about the truth of the world, and offered the contract for a Flame Haze, I was overjoyed. For so long, I had dreamed of glory and honor in war, and the contract promised much of battle, so I accepted immediately."

"Imagine the devastation in my heart when I realized that all my battles were for naught," he continued. "As soon as I became a Flame Haze, everyone forgot about me. No matter how many battles against Denizens I went through or how great a warrior I had become, no one would know about it. Instead of people greeting me as a hero and a champion, I was ignored, as if I never even existed."

As he narrated, Khamsin clenched his fist.

"But I knew that there was no turning back," he said. "I realized that there is nothing for Flame Haze but an eternity of protecting the balance in a war that ordinary humans would never know about. I grew tired of a life of meaningless fighting, so I became a tuner, so as to preserve the balance more efficiently and effectively."

"But soon, you will have to go into battle again," said Leanan-sidhe. She had felt the powerful Leviathan's presence before he had even entered the city. "And it will be against another very powerful Crimson Lord."

"Indeed, battle has been steadily returning to our lives since we met Yuji Sakai," said Behemoth.

"Since when have you been so concerned about us?" Khamsin asked suddenly. "Even if we do lose and Leviathan becomes a Crimson God, you can still send an emergency signal to our allies in Misaki City. They should be able to deal with him, after defeating the far superior Snake of the Festival, although it would surely be difficult."

"You're not afraid to die?" Leanan-sidhe asked.

"I'd prefer not to," Khamsin replied, "but my main purpose is to prevent dangerous imbalances in existence and nature, and apathy would surely lead to that. Even if Behemoth and I die, at least the forces of nature would be stable, albeit in the control of one I do not trust."

"There you go about the balance again," Leanan-sidhe said. "Don't you care at all how someone would feel when you're gone?"

"Who would feel sadness for a Flame Haze who is doomed to be forgotten?"

"I would."

Khamsin faced the Denizen. There was a sad, yet comforting smile on her face.

"I've already lost two people that were dear to me," she continued. "I do not wish to feel that sadness a third time, not with a friend who had done much for me."

"But I failed to restore your precious painting," Khamsin said.

"At least you tried," Leanan-sidhe said. "Besides Shana, not only were you the only Flame Haze who did not try to kill me on sight, but also offered your assistance. For that, I thank you."

"The True Trinity has rubbed off on you, haven't they?" said Khamsin.

"Yes, they have," Leanan-sidhe said with a small, thoughtful smile. "Two of them are young, and so is the third, at least in spirit, but they have taught me much. One of those things I learned from watching them is to protect what you hold dear."

"So you're concerned because you hold me dear?"

"You are one of the few friends I have left. I would not want to lose you."

Khamsin looked into the eyes of the Denizen. He now understood that he did indeed have someone to return to, someone who would remember him. He would not be forgotten, at least, not by her.

But that would be enough.

Suddenly, a new fire lit up in his spirit, and he found a new goal.

"You won't," he said. "I will win against Leviathan. But more importantly, I will return."

SnSnSnSnS

Later that day, Leanan-sidhe, by chance, saw Leviathan entering a secret cavern close to the wide lake. Elsewhere, Khamsin was pushing himself to train harder for the first time in years.

Masking her presence with an Unrestricted Method, the Spiral Organ followed the Crimson Lord, who did not seem to notice her.

The cavern was long and dark, and the only source of light came from Leviathan, who moved farther and deeper out of sight. The path wound this way and that, and at one point, Leanan-sidhe nearly slipped. Eventually, when she could no longer see Leviathan, she reached the bottom.

She found herself in a cold chamber illuminated by only a single lamp hanging from the ceiling. At the middle of the chamber was an hourglass Hougu. But it was not just any Hougu, it was…

"The Lawbreaker," Leanan-sidhe said to herself. Hope and excitement filled her body and she threw caution to the wind, even forgetting that Leviathan might be nearby.

She ran up to the Hougu and snatched it from its pedestal. "After so long, I have finally reached the end of my journey," she said as tears of joy flowed from her eyes.

"No matter what, you really wanted to get your hands on that. Am I right?" said Leviathan as he came down from the ceiling directly above the door. Leanan-sidhe froze, realizing her fatal mistake.

"Don't worry, I don't plan on harming you," Leviathan said. "In fact, I led you down here so you can take it for yourself, on purpose."

"Why?" Leanan-sidhe asked him suspiciously.

"Because I know what you went through in the past," Leviathan said. "At a time when I was weaker, I served the Crimson Lord who had held you captive for many years."

He looked at her sympathetically. "I understand how it feels to lose a loved one," he said. "But that Hougu could never bring my wife back, so I have no use for it. But you aren't going to use it for something as huge as reviving the dead. You can have it."

* * *

**Note: **I got the general details of Khamsin and Leanan-sidhe's past from Wikipedia. And thanks to CapoExecutor for his additional info on Leanan-sidhe (it's somewhere on my forum, posted a year ago).


	5. Chapter 4: Lawbreaker

Been wanting to do this for quite some time. Please review.

* * *

**Chapter 4: **Lawbreaker

A pillar of stone was smashed into pieces by a smaller rock that moved at a high speed from five meters away.

"Finally," Khamsin said to himself. He looked to a wall past the broken pillar. It was full of holes.

"Do you really think the past few days were enough to improve your chances of winning?" Behemoth said. "Your aim is still lacking."

"But at least my chances of hitting something from a distance is better than before," Khamsin said.

"I've never seen you like this since you became a tuner. Even in the past few days, you showed little resolve in your training. But now, your long-dormant warrior's spirit has returned."

Khamsin smiled lightly. "It seems you were right," he said. "By opening myself up to her, I have indeed found a new reason to live on. I think I understand the True Trinity a little more now."

Suddenly, he felt a huge distortion in the area.

"It can't be!" he said as he ran in the direction of the distortion.

He found Leanan-sidhe standing in the middle of a wide open space. Before her, the Lawbreaker and a painting, damaged beyond recognition, levitated. Orbiting the two was a number of spell insignias.

Leanan-sidhe felt the Flame Haze's presence and turned to him smiling.

"At long last, my quest has come to an end," she said. "I can finally turn back time and restore the painting that the one I loved left behind."

"Wait Leanan-sidhe, can't you feel the heavy distortions this is causing," Khamsin said.

Leanan-sidhe's expression quickly changed into a glare. "Even up to now, you're still only thinking about that?" she said. "And here I thought that after telling you my story, you would understand."

Khamsin slowly walked forward. "Please stop this," he said. "I don't want to have to stop you by force."

"I won't—I can't stop now," Leanan-sidhe said as she raised her hand, "not after coming this far."

In a matter of seconds, an Unrestricted Method spread over the entire area in the form of faintly glowing orbs which settled on the ground.

"Mines, and quite a lot of them," Behemoth noted.

"I'm sorry for what I am about to do, Leanan-sidhe," Khamsin said as chopped his hand forward. With Behemoth's powers, he created a trench that ran right through the minefield. He quickly went through this path towards the Denizen.

"I'm sorry too," Leanan-sidhe responded as she cast a fireball at the Flame Haze.

Before he could get hit, Khamsin leaped into the air and soared above his opponent. He called together a number of stones and merged them together into a large boulder before throwing it down on the Spiral Organ, who quickly reacted.

She gathered many of the mines she had set earlier into a large ball of flame, which she threw to intercept the falling stone. The fireball penetrated right through the large rock, causing it to break apart into pebbles in midair, and kept on going straight at Khamsin.

The Flame Haze narrowly dodged the counterattack and landed opposite from the trench he had created. Suddenly, he was hit by several explosions from the ground. Leanan-sidhe had made sure that the mines in that spot were not collected in her attack.

"So you lied to me again," Leanan-sidhe said as Khamsin recovered. "You still care only about the balance."

She summoned a fireball in her hand and threw it at Khamsin, who took the hit directly in the chest and was knocked back.

He crashed into a ruin, but it was not enough to take him down. He quickly got up again and charged forward while drawing stones to himself and building a full armor.

"But wouldn't your goal be meaningless if the world came to an end?" he said as he threw a punch.

His attack hit nothing but air, however, for at the last moment, Leanan-sidhe had teleported herself and the objects she was protecting to the top of a half-demolished building.

"I don't care," she said. "Like I said before, if I like what I see in the painting, I would die happy."

Despite having the high ground, Khamsin had no problem reaching her. He quickly summoned one tall golem from the ground and, riding on its head, ordered it to smash the structure. Leanan-sidhe barely teleported out of harm's way in time.

As she reappeared on open space some distance from her opponent, Khamsin faced her and spoke.

"Please give up," he said. "There's no way you can defeat me. The difference in power between us is just too vast."

"I won't, not when I'm so close to the end!" Leanan-sidhe persisted.

She stretched her hand out and cast an Unrestricted Method. Strings of light came out of her palm wrapped around the golem which Khamsin rode on. They quickly tightened and, after a moment, caused the stone familiar to crumble under the constriction.

As Leanan-sidhe had attacked the golem, Khamsin jumped at her. With her other hand, the Spiral Organ cast an arrow of fire.

Khamsin knew that the attack would hit him before he could create a shield of stone, so he took an alternative. He pulled out his hammer Hougu and, enlarging its head, used it to parry the shot.

Before Khamsin could reach Leanan-sidhe, however, the strings of light that had crushed his golem latched onto him from behind and pulled him away. And as he fell on the ground, he found himself surrounded by mines once more.

"True, I can never match you in raw power," Leanan-sidhe said. "But even so, I won't let you stop me."

As Khamsin got up, he sensed something different about Leanan-sidhe.

"She's already used up half of her Power of Existence," he said to himself. "At this rate, she'll disappear soon."

SnSnSnS

"Neptune, have you seen my father?"

Further away from where Khamsin and Leanan-sidhe fought, Lorelei searched for Leviathan, whose powerful presence had suddenly vanished.

"No, I have not," Neptune answered. "But I do remember him saying that he had something to do to prepare for tomorrow's duel. He is probably hidden by his Unrestricted Method Crystal Clear, so that the Flame Haze wouldn't be able to tell what he's up to."

Lorelei leaned back on a wall and sighed.

"Even after surviving an indirect battle with the Snake of the Festival, a feat considered impossible by most, my father still thinks I'm weak," she said.

"He is only concerned about you," said Neptune.

"But I can look after myself now," Lorelei said. "What if I became even more powerful?"

She heard Neptune chuckled discreetly.

"Do you really think that's impossible?" she said with a scowl. "Don't forget, I'm from the direct line of Gaia herself."

_Indeed you are, my child_, said a voice from inside the Caressing Melody.

Lorelei was startled. She shook her head.

"I'm probably hearing things," she said to herself.

SnSnSnS

"Please stop Leanan-sidhe," Khamsin pleaded. He was still trapped in the middle of a minefield. "If we continue on like this, you'll really die."

"I don't care. I've been collecting Power of Existence just for this day," Leanan-sidhe replied as she created a fireball in her hand. "Why should you, a Flame Haze who cares only about the balance, even be concerned?"

She threw the fireball at the Flame Haze, who parried it with his hammer.

"Because I don't want to experience the sadness of losing someone dear to me," Khamsin confessed.

He slammed his hammer on the ground, creating a seismic wave that set off every one of the mines around him. As they exploded simultaneously, a cloud of dust went up, hiding the combatants' line of sight. Khamsin took this chance to dash at his opponent.

As he closed in, the dust settled and his target came into view: the Lawbreaker.

"If I can just destroy that, she'll have to give up," Khamsin told himself.

"I won't let you!" Leanan-sidhe yelled as she slashed at him with an unstable whip of fire that dissolved after a single use. Although it disappeared, Leanan-sidhe managed to deliver another attack with her other hand.

At close range, she knocked Khamsin back with a fireball. When the Flame Haze landed on his back, he suddenly sank into the solid floor as if it were quicksand. Leanan-sidhe could only stand surprised at this unexpected move.

Khamsin reappeared from the ground right behind her and threw a punch at the Lawbreaker. But just before he could smash it to pieces, Leanan-sidhe caught his fist with both her hands. She didn't have any time to cast an Unrestricted Method, so all she did was channel the Power of Existence in her body to block the attack. Khamsin, realizing that this would quickly drain her of all energy, stopped pushing and jumped back.

"Do you think the man you loved would approve of this?" he said. "In the end, you'll be damaging the balance of world, but more importantly, you'll be destroying yourself. Do you think he would wish for that to happen?"

"Stop it! What would you know?!" Leanan-sidhe said. But Khamsin's words had really struck her hard, for he spoke the truth.

"I know that if he knew this would happen, he would never have made that painting," Khamsin continued.

"Stop it!" Leanan-sidhe said as she threw another fireball, which Khamsin dodged with a sidestep.

"You can't bring him back by merely restoring that painting. No matter what you do, you can't bring back the dead," he said. "Please understand, when one time passes it should never return."

"I said STOP IT!" Leanan-sidhe screamed as she was about to conjure up a multitude of fireballs around herself, but before she could complete it, Khamsin swiftly dashed forwards and hit her in the face.

It was a non-lethal hit. It was not even a punch, but a mere slap, but it was enough to stop Leanan-sidhe for a brief moment. That moment gave her enough time to realize that what she did was indeed wrong. Tears poured out of her eyes as she fell on her knees.

"You're right, he wouldn't want this," she said. "It seems that in the end, I'm still just another selfish Denizen who would do anything to achieve her goal."

She buried her face in her hands. "But this loneliness, it's unbearable," she said. "All I wanted was to be with him again, and I tried to use that painting to fill the void. But in the end, I'll still be alone!"

She suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around her warmly.

"I know how it is to be alone," he said. "Because of that, I lost my reason for fighting and living on. I became a shell of the human I used to be, until you became my reason to continue fighting to live. You aren't alone."

Leanan-sidhe continued to cry. "You promise you won't leave me, like the man I loved and Lamies did?" she said.

"I promise, I'll keep living," Khamsin said, "so I can stay by your side. But in return, I don't want you to leave me either."

Leanan-sidhe returned the embrace. "I won't," she said. "Thank you."

With Leanan-sidhe no longer desiring to use it, the Lawbreaker deactivated. The two levitating objects fell on the ground as the spell insignias around them vanished.

Hidden from view, Leviathan had watched the entire fight.

_I was hoping that tool of hunting would kill her_, he thought. _Then he'd be easy to defeat, since destroying his own friend would lead to him losing the will to live. No matter, I've seen enough of his abilities._

As he walked away, he stroked his lance.

_Marie, your wish will soon come true, when I become a Crimson God!_

After a while, Khamsin helped Leanan-sidhe up on her feet, then picked up the painting that lay on the floor. It was still in the same condition as it was before.

"I promise, I'll find a way for you to restore this without distorting the balance," the Flame Haze said to the Denizen.

"Thank you, but there's no need for that anymore," Leanan-sidhe replied. "It won't change the fact that he's dead. Besides, I have you now."

She held his hand and smiled. "From now on, I will stop living for the past," she said.

As he looked upon her face, Khamsin smiled as well. "I think I know exactly what's on this painting," he said. "A very beautiful girl."

At that, Leanan-sidhe's cheeks turned bright red.


	6. Chapter 5: End of the Contest

Please review.

* * *

**Chapter 5: **End of the Contest

When the time for the duel came, Khamsin and Leanan-sidhe were transported to a deserted island some distance from Atlantis. Neptune escorted them as well as his master, Leviathan. Lorelei chose to stay in Atlantis, however.

While the two contenders stood against each other on the beach, Leanan-sidhe watched from atop a cliff at a relatively safe distance. Next to her stood Neptune, who made sure that nothing would get in the way of the battle.

"Are you ready to face death, tool of hunting?" Leviathan said before the duel began.

"I do not plan on dying today," Khamsin replied. "Today, it is you who would be following Ziz's fate."

"Don't be too sure of yourself child," said Leviathan proudly. On a side note, he and his brothers were, in fact, much older than the ancient Flame Haze was. "Let us begin."

He summoned a wave of water from the sea behind and allowed himself to be swallowed by it. At the same time, Khamsin moved in the opposite direction, riding on a wave of soil. As he got to higher ground, Leviathan reappeared on the sea before him. The Crimson Lord called up a pillar of water from under him and stood on it.

With a single hand gesture, he offered his opponent the first move. Khamsin refused and responded with the same gesture. Leviathan shrugged and decided to attack.

From the sea below him, he fired three spears of highly pressurized water at his enemy. As Khamsin efficiently evaded them with sidesteps, the spears bore right through a steep cliff behind him.

The Flame Haze returned fire by hurling a large boulder, following it with a barrage of smaller stones. Leviathan effortlessly sliced the boulder in half with a tall blade of water from below and easily blocked the latter attack with a wall of water.

_Since he is capable of controlling many stones at once, that kind of tactic should be obvious! _Leviathan thought.

He stretched out with his hand and manipulated the water that had entered the cliff behind Khamsin. The water severely damaged the cliff from the inside and forced a landslide to fall over the Flame Haze.

Khamsin was able to sense the danger in time and avoided it by leaping forward. As the rocks rolled over where he had once stood, Khamsin was about to send them at his enemy, since they already had the momentum, but this plan was immediately foiled as Leviathan struck at him in mid-air with a long whip of water.

The Flame Haze fell on the beach. As he lay clutching his badly wounded shoulder, he saw that the rocks from the landslide continued rolling in his direction. Before he could get crushed, he used one of the larger boulders as a shelter against the avalanche. While he did this, he knew that he was still wide open to ranged attack, so he reached out to create a sandstorm to conceal himself.

But the merciless Leviathan would not allow it. He anticipated his opponent's next move and flooded the beach with a large wave of water. To avoid being washed away, Khamsin held on tightly to the heavy boulder he had been using as a shield earlier. He could barely do so, however, as his damaged shoulder had not even begun to recover.

_I have to get to safety somehow, so Behemoth can heal me_, Khamsin told himself as he clung tightly with his good arm. _But what can I use against such a relentless opponent?_

When the flood subsided, Khamsin had suddenly vanished from sight, although his presence could still be felt within the area. Leviathan knew exactly where his enemy hid.

He shot an arrow of water through the boulder that Khamsin had been clinging to. From the hole left in its wake, blood spilled out, and Khamsin emerged on the opposite side of the rock.

"How could he have possibly known where I was?!" Khamsin said as he held his wounded shoulder, which had just recovered right before being hit again.

"It's not only that," Behemoth said. "It is as if he is anticipating your every move and tactic."

"On top of that, he might have found a way to counter every defensive and offensive strategy I have," said Khamsin.

"At least he is close enough to use his infamous Sword of the Sea technique. If you were hit by that, it would be all over."

Khamsin got up and glanced towards Leanan-sidhe, who watched anxiously.

"I won't let such a thing happen," Khamsin said, his resolve burning hotter.

He sensed Killing Intent from Leviathan's direction and jumped aside in time to avoid a wide jet of water that tore through the boulder he hid behind. Before the Flame Haze could retaliate, he saw that another jet of water was headed right for him.

He dodged it and prepared to attack. Unknown to him, the jet of water that had just passed curved around and headed toward its target once more.

"Behind you!" Leanan-sidhe screamed loudly before being knocked to the ground by a strong blow on the head from Neptune.

Khamsin quickly reacted and dodged again. As the water passed by him, Leviathan came forward and quickly closed the gap between himself and his foe. He gathered all of the water from his recent attack and formed a tall, narrow blade. As soon as he was close enough, he slashed at Khamsin, who barely had enough time to take out and use his hammer Hougu to block the attack. Although the blade of water broke on impact, the Hougu suffered a deep scratch on its blunt head.

Meanwhile, on the cliff top, Neptune raised his trident to stab Leanan-sidhe, who still lay on the ground.

"_I want you to kill his companion, the Spiral Organ, if she does absolutely _anything_ to interfere,"_ Leviathan had told him the day before, just after he had watched the battle for the Lawbreaker.

His true motive for such an order was a more wicked reason, however. He knew that at a particular point, the Denizen would do something to protect Khamsin, and when his loyal underling would remove the one object that motivated the Flame Haze to live through the battle, Leviathan's victory would come easily. There was the risk of him flying into a rage, but that would also help him, albeit a little less than the desired effect.

Leanan-sidhe rolled away to avoid Neptune's killing strike and jumped to her feet. She managed to jump aside as Neptune fired a freezing beam at her. As soon as she evaded, she counterattacked by throwing a ball of energy at her enemy, who parried it with his weapon.

"Why are you suddenly trying to kill me?!" she said. "Did I violate the duel to such an extent that I must be executed?"

Neptune only responded by shooting an icicle at her. The Denizen evaded, then jumped aside as her foe followed it with a lunge of his trident.

_I don't have enough energy to face this kind of enemy, especially not since yesterday_, Leanan-sidhe told herself. _I can't leave Khamsin either._

She noticed that Neptune still stood near the cliff's edge and came up with a plan. She jumped aside as Neptune shot at her again, and raised her hand as he aimed at her again.

She unleashed a flash of light that blinded her enemy for a moment then hurled a rock at his head, throwing him off the cliff.

_That definitely won't be enough to stop him_, Leanan-sidhe thought. _But at least now I have time to set something up._

In a brief moment, Leviathan reformed his tall blade of water in one hand. At the same time, he created another blade in the other. With the two blades, he mercilessly and ferociously attacked his opponent, who he was steadily driving back.

The blades of water cleanly sliced right through trees and rocks as Khamsin tried his best to avoid them. Besides evasion, he used his hammer to block, although the cost was that it would be damaged with each strike. At one point, one of the water blades had managed to wound his leg.

Khamsin soon realized that Leviathan was pushing him into a corner. Quickly coming up with a strategy, he stomped on the ground, creating a tremor that destabilized Leviathan's footing for a very brief moment, but it was enough for Khamsin to hastily build a golem.

Leviathan tore the golem apart with a few slashes, and as it fell, a recovered Khamsin leapt at him from behind the falling stones with hammer raised. Leviathan put the two blades in his hands together and slashed at him, but Khamsin destroyed it with a swing of his hammer, which enlarged to twice its earlier size, yet still suffered damage from the strong Unrestricted Method.

As Khamsin closed in on his enemy and swung again, Leviathan took out his lance and thrust it straight into the hammer's head, which split into several pieces upon connecting. As a surprised Khamsin landed on the ground in front of him, he threw the Flame Haze back with a powerful kick.

"Give it up _boy_," Leviathan said mockingly as the Flame Haze stood up again. "Mountains of the earth may conquer the storms of wind, but the sea can always devour the land."

SnSnSnS

"Father seems to be doing pretty well," Lorelei said to herself as she watched the duel through an Unrestricted Method, which took the appearance of a pool of water.

"He's doing this for he and mother's dream," she said. "To unite the entire world and create the Empire of Pangaea, and then bring peace to the world."

_Such was my goal as well_, said a voice.

"Who-who's there?!" Lorelei said, startled. She was supposed to be the only one around at that time.

_Your father's mother_, came the reply.

"Impossible," Lorelei said aloud while still scanning the area. "She was sealed thousands of years ago."

_True, I still am sealed. However, I have a way to return._

"Could it be the Unrestricted Methods you planted in my father and his brothers?"

_Correct, each Unrestricted Method within them is actually a device that absorbs their powers in death. So that when I become one with the remaining child, the power over each element will return._

"That sounds too familiar," Lorelei grumbled.

_The Snake of the Festival stole that idea from me! However, I won't make the same mistake he did and bring about my own demise. The one who inherits my power will use it for whatever he wills, even if it is against my own goal. But if he is killed, then I will take over._

It was not long until Lorelei realized that Gaia was speaking from within her.

"How can you speak to me?" she asked.

_I did not expect any of my children to have their own offspring, especially a daughter. But because you are my direct descendant, and are a female, and also because you had entered one of the realms created by the one who sealed me, the Snake of the Festival, I am able to speak with you._

Lorelei looked into the pool. Her father still had the upper hand. But she knew what Khamsin was truly capable of, not just in power. He was one of the few people who had survived the battle against the Snake of the Festival in Misaki City.

"If my father loses, then his dream and your goal will never come to pass?" she asked Gaia.

_Perhaps_… Gaia replied.

SnSnSnS

Even after a long duration of avoiding Leviathan's attacks, Khamsin was unable to counterattack or at least escape from the range of the ferocious attacks of his foe's lance and water blades, for he was always one step ahead of him. The Flame Haze had already suffered several wounds, both minor and heavy, and his orange jacket was tattered. By sheer luck and skill, the Flame Haze was barely staying alive.

"We can't keep this up for long," Behemoth told his partner.

"But I can't break away no matter what I do," Khamsin replied as he made another attempt to counterattack, but Leviathan stopped him before he could even perform the setup.

"There is no doubt, he can predict your every move," Behemoth said. "How about moving differently from how you normally do?"

Khamsin ducked a blade of water, only to be kicked in the face and knocked back on the ground. He rolled backwards to avoid being run through by Leviathan's lance.

"Impossible," he said. "I can't come up with something new so quickly, not like this."

"Then how about mimicking the moves of those he has not faced yet?"

Khamsin pondered over his contractor's advice and hastily came up with a strategy.

When Neptune leapt back to the top of the cliff, he saw Leanan-sidhe running down a slope in the opposite direction, and with her, her presence. He immediately gave chase. As he left, the real Leanan-sidhe peered from her hiding place. She had used an illusion as a decoy to lure her enemy away.

When Neptune was out of sight, she returned to the edge of the cliff and continued to watch the duel below.

"I promised that I wouldn't leave you Khamsin," she said. "Please return like you said."

On the beach, Khamsin jumped aside as Leviathan lunged, then ducked as his foe slashed at him with water. As Leviathan attempted to kick at him, Khamsin jumped back and quickly formed full stone armor over himself. At the same time, golems of similar size and shape appeared around Leviathan, surrounding him.

Khamsin and every one of the golems spun around Leviathan in unison.

"What are you trying to pull?" Leviathan said arrogantly. "As if this will stop me."

He unleashed a wave of water from his own body at all sides. Every one of the golems was blown apart, but Khamsin had ejected himself while the doppelgangers spun around his foe, giving him time to recover his strength. As the golems were crushed to pieces by the water, Khamsin gathered the muddy sand at his feet and turned it into armor. From this armor, he created tentacle-like appendages that came from his back.

With these appendages, he lashed out at his enemy, who parried and evaded each attack. Khamsin then put the tentacles together and formed them into a massive drill.

He and Leviathan lunged at each other at the same time. The latter's lance pierced right through it, however, he also trapped his arm with it. Leviathan resorted to using his power to extract the water from his foe's weapon, removing the firmness of mud. But Khamsin had already expected this and planned his next move.

As the mud turned back into dry sand, Khamsin used the many grains to create a whirlwind that picked up his foe and spun him around in the air helplessly.

While Leviathan was wide open, Khamsin called a particularly long stone shard from the side and reformed it into a crude katana-like shape. With it, he dashed forward in the air and swung it at his enemy.

Leviathan flew back and landed on his feet. His upper body was wounded and bruised by the dull blade, which had been wielded by powerful arms. He looked up in the air to see Khamsin preparing his next attack.

As soon as he had struck his foe with the crude sword, Khamsin gathered many more stones together and leapt high in the air above his enemy. He threw the collection of stones at Leviathan.

The Crimson Lord believed that his enemy was running out of new ideas and was resorting to his old predictable techniques, so he prepared to counterattack. He was surprised when the boulder separated into several missiles in midflight, and each of these missiles split into a cluster of more stones. And each of these stones approached him at every angle from above.

Leviathan didn't have enough time to create any proper defense against the bombardment and instead braced himself as the hail of rocks fell over him.

Khamsin immediately followed the barrage with two massive arms made of stone. With the left of these arms, he knocked away Leviathan's lance as he tried to counterattack, then attacked with his right. In mid-swing, the stone arm revealed a sharp claw instead of a hand, and with it, the Flame Haze tore through the Crimson Lord's chest and sent him flying back again.

Leviathan got up, clutching his aching upper body. He had never expected these kinds of attacks at all.

"This is very unlike your element," he said. "Isn't earth supposed to remain as it is?"

"Like the currents of water and wind, earth can also change," Khamsin replied. "It does so in accordance to the people and forces that interact with it."

With much effort, Khamsin gave the wet sand around him shape, and in a few moments, a tall dragon-like serpent of firm sand emerged from the ground. The Flame Haze sent the creature at his enemy, whose blades of water and lance had little effect against it.

Leviathan was crushed by the serpent, then was thrown to the side. He struggled to get up again, but Khamsin closed the distance between them and drove an elbow into him before sending him into a boulder with a kick. The rock smashed to pieces on impact.

Leviathan got up and looked at his enemy. He could not believe that he was actually losing. All his manipulation and planning had gone to waste.

But he was not beaten yet. He still had one last trump card: his true form. It could destroy cities and sink islands. However, it only worked when he was completely immersed in his element.

Creating a stream of water under his feet, Leviathan raced to the sea.

"If he reaches the sea and transforms, we're doomed," Behemoth urgently warned his Flame Haze.

"Then we end this now," Khamsin said as he chased after him.

But Leviathan was much faster, and Khamsin knew that he couldn't get to him before he reached the sea. He came up with something else.

Taking a long, broad rock, he formed it into a large sword. Before aiming, he glanced at Leanan-sidhe, who still watched from the cliff.

_I will definitely return from this,_ he told himself. _Please hit._

Just as Leviathan was within a few feet of the sea, Khamsin threw the stone sword in his hand with all his might and skill. The blade impaled the Crimson Lord in the back and he fell face first into the sand, just several inches away from the water.

"I've… failed…?" Leviathan muttered in disbelief as his dying body dissolved into sea-blue flames. Yet, even in death, he still held his lance tightly.

"Marie…" he mumbled as he finally died, and with his death, the second of Gaia's Unrestricted Methods was released.

"I hit him," Khamsin muttered with a small smile on his face before collapsing in exhaustion. Leanan-sidhe hastily raced down to his side.

SnSnSnS

In Atlantis, Lorelei watched Leviathan's death.

"Father!!" she screamed loudly.


	7. Chapter 6: Hand of Eden

**Note: **You didn't think it would be over this quickly, did you? What's a story without some sort of twist?

* * *

With his master dead, Neptune no longer had any reason to serve him. Although, he still had one last duty, to report to Leviathan's daughter. He left the island with no grudge towards Behemoth's Flame Haze or to Leanan-sidhe, for the duel had still ended honorably.

He found Lorelei with her back against him, still looking into the pool she had used to watch the duel. As he opened his mouth to speak, Lorelei went ahead of him.

"He's been defeated, hasn't he?" she said without turning.

"Yes," Neptune replied, unable to think of anything better.

"And you just let him die like that?"

"I—ugh!" Neptune was about to say, but he was suddenly impaled in the chest by a spear of pressurized water as Lorelei turned. Her Killing Intent was burning strongly.

"You are nothing but a failure," Lorelei said angrily as she sliced Neptune in half with a blade of water.

As the two halves of Neptune's corpse burned away, Lorelei looked up to the sea's surface.

"I will be the one to fulfill the dream of my father and mother," she said.

**Chapter 6:** Hand of Eden

When Khamsin came to, he found himself looking up at a dark, starry sky. His head lay on something soft, and when he tilted his head, his eyes met with Leanan-sidhe's.

"I'm so glad," she said with a soft smile.

"How long was I out?" Khamsin asked.

"You've been unconscious for half a day," Behemoth said. "I've taken the liberty to cure all of your injuries during that time."

"Half a day?" Khamsin repeated. "You've been like this for that long?" he asked Leanan-sidhe. She nodded.

Khamsin quickly tried to raise his head from her lap, but she stopped him.

"You used up every bit of energy in your body during your duel," she said.

"Indeed, it was literally the first time in ages that I have seen you go all out against a single enemy," Behemoth said.

"You need some rest," said Leanan-sidhe.

"Isn't this an inconvenience?" Khamsin asked her.

The Spiral Organ shook her head. "Not at all," she replied. "Please, just rest. You've fought enough for one day."

Khamsin relaxed himself and continued to lie down on her lap. "To be honest, I wasn't very certain that I would even survive, but I still did my best, for you. Who would have thought I would have fought so much like a warrior again?" he said. "Perhaps I just needed a reason to fight."

"Does this mean you'll stop being a tuner?" Leanan-sidhe asked him.

"Maybe, maybe not," Khamsin responded. "Only two things are certain: I will continue to aid the cause of our allies in Japan and establish a world where the two of us can live in peace alongside other Flame Haze and Crimson Denizens, and that I will always be with you."

Leanan-sidhe smiled again. "Is that a confession?" she said.

Khamsin peacefully closed his eyes. "Probably," he said.

He and the Denizen looked up at the night sky. The stars, which were as much as the sand on the beach, illuminated the dark ceiling of the world, twinkling and shining. Gazing at such a beautiful thing with the one they cared about was worth fighting to continue living.

After a time of peaceful silence, Khamsin spoke again.

"Behemoth, what do we do next?" he inquired.

"We call upon the powers my mother has left for the remaining brother," the Crimson Lord answered. "Together, we will summon the full power of the Hand of Eden."

Very suddenly, arrows of water came up from the sea before them and came straight at them. Leanan-sidhe reacted quickly enough to cast a spell that redirected the projectiles away from them.

Khamsin jumped to his feet and assumed a battle-ready stance. "I thought this was already over," he said.

"Unfortunately for you, it isn't over until my father's dream is fulfilled," Lorelei said as she came up from the water. She was levitating above the waves, and her eyes glowed blue like a pair of bright sapphires. "If you want to continue living on, help me see this through."

"We won't join you for such a cause," Khamsin answered.

"For one with so many years, that was a very unwise decision," Lorelei said as she lashed at him with a whip of water.

Khamsin and Leanan-sidhe avoided the attack. Lorelei attacked again with the same weapon, but Khamsin stopped it with a wall of sand.

As the barrier fell, Lorelei threw a spear of water at her enemies, but instead of harming them, it phased through them like they weren't even there.

"Decoys?!" Lorelei realized.

A small number of tall stone golems appeared at different angles. At the top of the largest stood Khamsin and Leanan-sidhe.

"Stop this!" Leanan-sidhe pleaded. "We don't have to fight. Don't you think your father, who willingly risked his life, would rather have you bring peace to the world rather than use your power for revenge?"

Lorelei laughed loudly and mockingly at that. "Fool," she said. "I _am_ going to bring peace to the world, but not in the way you have in mind. I will do it the way my parents and grandmother envisioned."

She faced Khamsin. "To tell you the truth, although I liked you as a friend and temporary ally, I didn't wish for you to win against Leviathan," she said. "Not just because he was my father, but because I know that you would let the power of the Hand of Eden go to waste. Although the earth itself can change, it will always remain passive and unmoving unless there is outside influence. You, like earth, would not move on your own. Even with all that power, you would still allow yourself to be in the service of others, to work under weaker people. Truly, it is such a waste!"

"Do you really believe that if I gained the power of the Hand of Eden, I would become stronger than my allies?" Khamsin said. "In case you have forgotten, even the Snake of the Festival was not defeated by power alone. From what I have learned from them, power does not make one strong."

"So you're saying you are stronger than me?" Lorelei said. "Very well, let us see your strength, for only the strong can decide the way the world will be reshaped."

Khamsin directed every one of his golems to attack his opponent. As the boulders that flew at Lorelei from several angles were sliced to pieces by her water whips, sending chunks of rock past her, Khamsin leapt forward while Leanan-sidhe prepared to cast an Unrestricted Method.

When Khamsin was halfway there, Lorelei attacked all of his golems at the same time. Each one was torn apart by a number of water arrows. Fortunately, Leanan-sidhe had managed to get out of harm's way, and then she cast her spell.

Khamsin's running form suddenly seemed to multiply into three. Lorelei responded to this by unleashing a large wave of water that wiped out all three.

As Khamsin was blown back by the water, Leanan-sidhe cast another spell. Spell insignias wrapped around her enemy and pulled her towards the shore. But just before she was within the recovering Khamsin's melee range, a strong wind suddenly knocked down the Spiral Organ, and Lorelei broke free of her spell.

Khamsin quickly stood up and launched a boulder at his enemy, who merely raised her hand. He was astonished when the large rock suddenly stopped in midair.

"Did I mention that I now possess the power of the Hand of Eden?" Lorelei said.

"That would explain the sudden rise in power I felt," Behemoth said.

"That can't be possible, Behemoth is the only surviving brother," Khamsin said.

"And I am Leviathan's daughter," Lorelei said. "Like him, I too am able to become the Hand of Eden. But because you were knocked out, I took my chance to call upon Gaia's power."

Khamsin suddenly clenched his fist while she spoke, commanding the hovering boulder to crumble into many stones. Each of these stones entombed Lorelei and Khamsin quickly smashed her into the ground with them.

"Despite having much power, she has no experience with other elements," Behemoth said. "Even her skill with her own element should be less than Leviathan's."

"Damn you," Lorelei said as she got up.

She blasted him with air, but Khamsin remained where he stood, rooting himself to the ground beneath him. Lorelei tried to lash at him with her whips of water, but Khamsin countered these with whips of sand.

"Strange, even though she has the power of the Hand of Eden, she should be able to break through our defense with a simple attack like this," Behemoth noted. "Could it be that she has only half of my mother's power?"

"That's sounds logical," Khamsin replied as he continued to deflect Lorelei's attacks.

"Die!" Lorelei yelled as she summoned a rock and hurled it at Khamsin, who did not even need to move to avoid it. The projectile missed him entirely.

"Earth is tougher than wind and water, but it is also the least flexible," Khamsin said. "I've had this power for ages, and I can still barely hit a target at range. What more for someone with no experience? You won't win, so give up."

"Shut it!" Lorelei said bitterly. "Even if I lose, the Empire of Pangaea will still be founded."

She summoned many tentacles of water and prepared to attack. Right before she could send them towards Khamsin, Leanan-sidhe ran to Khamsin's side and blinded her with a flash of light, causing her to miss and leaving her wide open.

Khamsin used the earth beneath him to dash forward, quickly closing the space between them. The Flame Haze hit her hard with his elbow, knocking her down.

"No! I won't lose!" Lorelei persisted as she struggled to get up. At the same time, she called a number of stones around her, attempting to mimic Khamsin's giant golem armor.

However, Khamsin himself was able to form his armor in less than half the time, since he was the one who invented and mastered the technique. Before Lorelei could finish building her armor, Khamsin came at her in his and hit her hard with a powerful fist.

Lorelei was sent spinning through the air before skidding on the ground face-first. Khamsin and Leanan-sidhe approached her.

"You've done enough," Leanan-sidhe said. "You don't have to keep fighting."

"You can trust us to help bring peace to the world," Khamsin said.

"No, I refuse to give in!" Lorelei said stubbornly. "I will avenge my father, and I will make his dream come true."

With the last of her strength, she began to call upon the elements of earth, wind and water, but her enemies acted quickly against her. Leanan-sidhe created the illusion that Khamsin had multiplied into five. Each of these charged forward, but were blown away by either of the three elements.

But Lorelei failed to notice the real Khamsin coming from behind. His whole arm was wrapped in stone, and his elbow was sharp like a stalagmite. With that elbow, he struck the back of her neck with his full strength.

Lorelei fell forward and did not get up again. As she died, tears fell from her eyes.

"You left us with no choice," Khamsin said.

After a moment, he, Behemoth and Leanan-sidhe expected her body to burn away, but it didn't. They were astonished when it rose again. However, she now emitted a different presence.

The body of Lorelei faced Khamsin with glowing bright green eyes and stretched her hand towards him, or rather, towards his contractor's vessel.

As a string of spell insignias came out of the bracelet, Khamsin suddenly felt weaker. His tiredness from both battles of that day multiplied. He began to feel like an ordinary human boy.

"What's happening?" he said wearily. Before him, his enemy changed shape and her power grew as she was enveloped in a sphere of earth, water, wind and fire.

"When the body I am one with dies, I take over," said Gaia. "Although my vessel lacked half my power, I am able to retrieve the other half through my sons. She was not able to fully call upon wind and water because earth was not there to balance them. But now, I am able to bring all elements under my command."

"But, I wasn't defeated," Khamsin said.

"True, but it was I who planted the Unrestricted Method in the first place," Gaia said as her true form emerged.

Her legs turned into a never-stopping tornado of white wind. Her arms were smooth and made of clay. Her upper body and head was pure blue water. She had a very beautiful face and her eyes and hair were blazing green fire.

"I will give you one last chance," she said. "Please join me."

"Forgive me mother, but that is something we cannot do," Behemoth said. "Khamsin has made up his mind, and true to the element of earth, it is not easily shifted."

"Then I am sorry to do this to your Flame Haze Behemoth," she said as she raised her hand.

A powerful hurricane suddenly swept over the entire island, sending Khamsin flying. As the Flame Haze tossed and turned helplessly in the wind, he spotted Leanan-sidhe in the same predicament. He reached out toward her with his hand and she did the same. When they managed to grab a hold of each other, they hugged each other tightly.

When the winds stopped, they fell on top of a hill, near a cliff. After recovering for a moment, Leanan-sidhe planted an Unrestricted Method on the ground nearby, leaving behind a barely visible spell circle.

It did not take long for Gaia to find her and the Flame Haze, who was still too weak to even stand. Leanan-sidhe bravely stood in front of Khamsin with her arms spread.

"I won't let you hurt him!" she yelled defiantly.

"Very brave of you," Gaia said. "I'm touched. But I cannot stop now."

Before the Crimson God attacked, Leanan-sidhe fired a bright beam that looked much like a spell insignia at her. The Unrestricted Method was easily dodged, and it flew straight into the night sky. The Hand of Eden returned fire.

She created a ball of green fire in her hand and threw it down at her opponent, who quickly grabbed Khamsin and jumped away. However, Leanan-sidhe slipped and slid down the cliff side. They still held each other tightly, even as they rolled, until they crashed at the bottom of the hill.

Khamsin was still too weak to run, so Leanan-sidhe carried him. She knew they would not get far, but she still did the best she could to protect both of them.

"It's no use, we can't beat her alone," Khamsin said weakly. "Save yourself."

"I'm not going to live my life alone again," Leanan-sidhe responded. "And we don't have to fight this by ourselves."


	8. Final Chapter: To Change the Planet

This is the final chapter of _Lords of Nature._ I hope you enjoy it!

**Note:** When making a spin-off crossover, make sure that the guest characters don't upstage the main characters. This isn't easy, I can tell you that.

* * *

Many ages ago, the Hand of Eden Gaia had tried to unite the ancient people of Earth by bringing all their lands together under an empire she called Pangaea. She had already shaped the large masses of land so that they could fit with each other, but before she could bring the pieces of the puzzle together, two Crimson Gods intervened: the Flame of Heaven Alastor and the Snake of the Festival.

After a long battle, she was sealed away by the Snake of the Festival. Locked away for many a millennia, she waited for one of descendants to inherit the title of Hand of Eden. But even as she waited, she continued to watch the Earth, for a part of her had always stayed in it, like its spirit.

She watched as man had continued to slowly destroy the once rich, beautiful and bountiful planet, like a poison. She believed that this was because the people did not care about how their actions affected their neighbors. She watched as men and Crimson Denizens tore apart the land and each other. She became more and more desperate to bring the world under the Empire of Pangaea, under her rule, as soon as possible, so that the Earth may grow and prosper.

Now she was free again, free to rule the Earth with an iron fist and a green thumb.

In present-day, Leanan-sidhe ran as fast as her legs could carry her, dragging Khamsin along. Although the Flame Haze had recovered enough strength to run with her on his own feet, he still did not have the power to fight back against Gaia.

The Crimson God flew above them, bombarding them with fire, water and ice. She also brought up walls and pillars before her targets, driving them to a corner. Khamsin and Leanan-sidhe soon found themselves trapped between the base of a tall, steep cliff and their enemy.

"Because you are my son, Behemoth, I will give you one last chance," Gaia said with a sympathetic voice. "Join with me. If it is up to your Flame Haze Khamsin, then, if you join me, I will spare you all, including the Denizen girl you hold so dear."

"We won't join you," Khamsin said resolutely.

"Why? You want to make a peaceful world, don't you?" Gaia said. "We can make that happen."

"_Make_?" Leanan-sidhe said. "You're going to establish peace by force, aren't you?"

"You can put it that way," Gaia replied.

"Then it would make you no better than the Snake of the Festival," said Leanan-sidhe.

"That is exactly what our allies are fighting against," Behemoth said. "We plan on helping them establish peace through peace. Please, join our side mother."

Gaia laughed a bit before speaking again. "I'm afraid I cannot do that," she said with a sad tone. "It seems that this will only end with the demise of either of us. And so, Behemoth, Khamsin and Leanan-sidhe, prepare for the final test of your strength, for only the strongest may change the planet and guide its fate. That was the whole point of the contest," she muttered the last sentence.

"Farewell," she said as she conjured up an enormous ball of green fire above her head with two hands.

Before she could throw it, a storm of blue energy beams fell upon the Hand of Eden from above, and the green fireball dissipated. Half a second later, a girl with long burning red hair, blazing eyes, a black cape and wings of flame swooped down and slashed at her with a long katana. Gaia withdrew and the girl chased after her, followed by another girl with cyan hair, green eyes, a white hat and mantle and a gold staff, who was shooting more beams of blue energy while in pursuit.

A young man with brown hair and gray eyes, wearing a long gray coat, flew down to Leanan-sidhe and Khamsin. He quickly began to heal them with a Flame of Purification.

"Are you two alright?" he asked them.

"Other than the fact that we've nearly been killed several times, Leanan-sidhe being low on Power of Existence and that my control over earth been taken away, we're just fine," Khamsin said sarcastically. "How did you get here so fast anyway? I was expecting us to die before you kids came."

"Says the old man trapped in a little boy's body," the young man mumbled. "Leanan-sidhe-san, your teleportation portal worked perfectly." He referred to the spell circle she had planted atop a hill earlier.

"I was hoping it would," Leanan-sidhe said.

In the distance, the two girls continued to battle the Crimson God whilst flying through the air. Green, red and blue flames flew in various directions in the night sky, like a fireworks display.

"So, what's the problem here exactly?" the young man asked.

"Ask the Flame of Heaven for the details," Behemoth said. "I'm sure he has figured the general details by now. Besides, you don't have any time to waste talking to us, do you?"

The young man nodded and flew to help his comrades against the Hand of Eden.

"She said that this is a test to see who is strong enough to change the world," Khamsin said as he watched him leave.

"Go and show her just how strong our alliance is, Mystes of the Reiji Maigo Yuji, Flaming-Haired Blazing-Eyed Hunter Shana and Supreme Throne Hecate," said Leanan-sidhe.

**Final Chapter: **To Change the Planet

Hecate and Shana circled around Gaia, attacking her at range. At Gaia's flank, Hecate unleashed a barrage of Aster beams in her direction. The Hand of Eden countered by summoning around her an exceedingly strong cyclone of wind that not only deflected the beams, but also tossed the Priestess away. Shana then came from behind, slicing through the wind with her blade before her.

Before she could come within range, Gaia hit her with a blast of water that came out of her hand. By this time, Yuji had already joined the battle. He entered the hurricane from below, just above the sea, which had turned extremely violent as an effect of Gaia's wrath. He flew up through the eye of the storm where it was the least intense. And then, he breathed in before letting out a blast of grayish-blue fire from his mouth.

Gaia met the fire with her hand. With her power over all elements, she took control of the flame and sent it back at the Mystes, who braced himself by holding up his arms like a shield. The fire pushed him down, but he was able to resist enough to stay airborne. And thanks to the gray long coat Hecate had given him, which was made of the same material as her own clothes, he did not take much damage.

Gaia followed the counterattack by dropping meteorites from the sky. Yuji did his best to dodge them, and every now and then, he had to destroy an incoming projectile with a fireball, or several at once with a barrage of Aster beams from an outstretched palm. However, he found difficulty in getting within range of his enemy again.

Hecate came in from above while Shana attacked from the side at the same time. The falling meteorites stood no chance against Hecate's mastery of Aster, and Shana literally cut her way through any obstacle while heading straight at her foe. Both girls were shrouded in blue and red flames, respectively, as they flew.

Just as Shana got within melee range, the Hand of Eden vanished in a cloud of mist. As Shana's attack missed, she was pushed back by a bolt of green lightning that came from Gaia's fingertips. Fortunately, Shana had managed to shield herself with her sword and suffered little damage.

The powerful cyclone around Gaia turned into a wild snowstorm, and soon the blizzard was filled with lightning as well. Both Hecate and Shana were forced to withdraw to a safe distance by Yuji's side.

"It hasn't been that long since we last fought a Crimson God," Hecate said.

"Speaking of which, Alastor, you mentioned that you and the Snake of the Festival had to team up to beat her, why?" Shana asked.

"Because his all-consuming flame wouldn't work on her," Yuji answered ahead of the Flame of Heaven. "Apparently, she is capable of controlling all elements, including fire."

"Indeed, even I had a difficult time against her," Alastor said through his pendant vessel. "And this time, we don't have the help of another powerful being."

"We'll figure something out," Shana said. "Right Yuji?"

Not waiting for her enemies to attack, Gaia took the offensive. She unleashed a wave of wind, water, ice and lightning at them. In reaction, Yuji threw his fist at the oncoming attack, unleashing raw Power of Existence that parted the wave. At the same time, Hecate channeled Power of Existence into a gold and bronze bracelet Hougu on her left wrist and created a translucent barrier around them, ensuring their survival.

When the attack passed, Shana flew to Yuji and mounted her feet on his hands. The Mystes threw her at their enemy with all his might, and the Flame Haze flew like a rocket, piercing through anything in the way with a sword of intense blazing fire.

The Nietono Shana sliced right through Gaia's abdomen, splitting her in two. The two halves were then swallowed by two dragons of pure blue flame from Hecate. And finally, both halves were hit by a massive ten-foot ball of fire from Yuji.

As the fireball exploded on the Crimson God, Yuji, Shana and Hecate withdrew to a relatively safe distance. As the smoke and flames from Yuji's finishing move subsided, it seemed that nothing was left of her.

"Yuji, you didn't hold back," Shana said.

"With an enemy like this, I have to give it my all," Yuji replied. He was still on the alert. "Besides, a Crimson God would never be defeated this easily."

"True," said Hecate.

Suddenly, a twister of water came up from the sea below and met with a twister that formed in the place where Gaia had once been. Clay from the island also flew up to the joining elements, and soon, a green fire reappeared.

Gaia had quickly regenerated her form, and now she was twice as large as she was just a moment earlier.

"Insolent fools," Gaia said as she prepared to attack. "Do not underestimate the power of the elements."

SnSnSnS

"Do not underestimate the strength of our allies," Leanan-sidhe said. She and Khamsin had climbed to higher ground to avoid the gigantic crashing waves that hit the island. They watched the battle over the sea intensely.

Khamsin lay back on a rock. "Behemoth, how do you feel?" he asked.

"The same as you do," his contractor replied. "For a long time, you have been one of the most powerful Flame Haze, because I was also a powerful Crimson Lord. But now that our power is gone, there is a feeling of emptiness."

Khamsin watched intently as Yuji evaded a bolt of lightning before retaliating with his own.

Leanan-sidhe turned towards the Flame Haze and his contractor. "What exactly is the Hand of Eden's plan?" she asked.

"The Empire of Pangaea is slightly similar to the Grand Order Snake of the Festival in that it involves the complete reformation of the physical world," Behemoth explained. "However, she would not touch the people, but the land they live on. She understood that the reason people were always in conflict with one another was because they have always been distant. If she brought them all together under one rule, she believed there would be peace."

"But isn't that somewhat dictatorial?" Leanan-sidhe said.

"Yes it is," Khamsin replied.

"Like the Snake of the Festival, she has good motives, but she's bringing it about by force, as you had said," Behemoth said.

"Can we unite the world without bringing the lands together?" Khamsin said. "If so, perhaps we could get one step closer to true peace."

"A peaceful unified world would indeed be good," Leanan-sidhe said.

SnSnSnS

Yuji, Shana and Hecate flanked Gaia in various directions. As they circled around her, they attacked at range, but these efforts were in vain, for the Crimson God was able to counter anything that went her way.

"Enough of this," Gaia said as she raised her arms. The starry sky was soon veiled by dark clouds that discharged bolts of lightning, followed by loud thunder. From the sea below, underwater volcanoes erupted, and the lava spouted out with such force that it shot high above the sea. The sea itself turned more violent, and ash filled the air.

Gaia directed bolts of lightning and streams of lava at her enemies. Shana blocked the molten rock with her sword while Yuji merely dispersed it with strong punches. As lightning came her way, Hecate redirected the electricity with her staff.

"We won't last much longer if this keeps up! We need a plan!" Shana yelled.

"Come to think of it, I feel a strangely familiar feeling coming from inside Gaia," Yuji said.

"I sense it too, but not as much as you do," Hecate said. She pushed back a stream of lava with her Aster beams concentrated on one spot.

"Hmm, could it be?" Alastor pondered.

"What is it?" Shana asked him.

"In the past, just before we sealed Gaia away, I remember the Snake of the Festival planting one more Unrestricted Method on her. I asked him what it was, but he merely told me that I would know when the time came," said the Flame of Heaven.

"So he expected her to return," Hecate said.

"I still don't see how that's going to help us," Shana said as she deflected a bolt of lightning, and then flew low to avoid a stream of lava.

"Knowing the Snake of the Festival, that Unrestricted Method is a failsafe," Yuji said as he evaded a shower of ice spears from the sky. "And even though he's no longer in me, I still have knowledge of many of his spells, including how to activate them."

"Then all we have to do is get you close enough to activate it," Shana said.

"You make that sound easy," Hecate said. "But let us try it."

She looked at Yuji. "Are you sure you're alright with this?" she asked.

Yuji nodded. "It's our only chance," he said. "And besides, I'm the only one who can do this."

SnSnSnS

As he watched, Khamsin continued to feel uneasy. Leanan-sidhe looked at him concernedly.

"You can't seem to relax," she said.

"How can I?" the Flame Haze replied. "Here we are, watching our allies battle against another powerful enemy to protect what they hold dear, while we sit on the sidelines. I feel so powerless, so useless."

He bowed his head. "Could this same feeling have been what drove Yuji Sakai into becoming one with the Snake of the Festival?" he said, glancing at Leanan-sidhe. "I think I understand why he chose to do so now."

He curled up, embracing his legs. "I want to fight, so I too can protect, but I can't do anything," he mumbled.

Leanan-sidhe held him closer to her. He looked back at her and was surprised to see a smiling face. "You've already fought enough," she said. "Rest now."

Khamsin's anxiety was quickly overwhelmed by Leanan-sidhe's warm embrace, and the Flame Haze closed his eyes.

"If only we could get our power back," he muttered.

SnSnSnS

Shana charged in towards Gaia from slightly below her. The Hand of Eden attempted to blow her back with a blast of wind, followed by a hail of green fireballs. Shana sliced through the wind, and trusted Hecate to intercept the fireballs with her Aster, which she did. At the same time, Yuji swooped in from above. He channeled Power of Existence through his whole body and pushed it all forward, plowing through Gaia's defenses.

Gaia quickly called up a great volume of seawater and hit Shana with it, blowing her away. With the same water, she froze Hecate in a glacier of ice. As she fought the girls back, she also remembered to keep Yuji at bay. She shot a heavy, steady stream of water in his direction. The Mystes was not pushed back, but it was enough to keep him from advancing. Gaia then hit him from the side with a bolt of lightning that knocked him aside.

As the Mystes spun in the air from the counterattack, Shana quickly melted the ice containing Hecate with Alastor's flame. The two girls then proceeded to continue attacking.

"It's no use," Gaia said as she faced them. "Surrender."

Shana only responded by covering herself in fire and charging forward with her sword pointed ahead of her. Gaia attempted to intercept her with various elemental attacks, but she cut and deflected anything that came her way.

At the same time, Hecate circled around her enemy, firing Aster beams like a machine gun as she went, and sometimes letting loose a rain of beams in a single shot.

Gaia barely felt Hecate's attacks, and she knew Shana couldn't kill her, no matter how many times she cut her up. But the two girls were beginning to become a nuisance, so Gaia decided to finish things.

She stretched out her hand and extinguished the flames around Shana, making her more vulnerable, and then hit her with a bolt of lightning. She also blasted her away, towards the island, with a green fireball. She turned to Hecate.

As Hecate continued to fly around her, Gaia pushed her back with a blast of wind that also stunned her for a very brief moment. But that moment also gave Gaia an opening. She called a large meteor down from the sky towards her. Hecate hastily reacted and smashed it to pieces with Aster. Unfortunately, the broken fragments of the meteor, still guided by Gaia, closed in on the Priestess and battered her down.

Although severely hurt, Hecate still managed to teleport herself safety to the nearby island just before she could hit the sea. Leanan-sidhe quickly ran to help the two girls.

Gaia suddenly felt a pain coming from her chest. Yuji had managed to get close enough to her while she had been dealing with Shana and Hecate.

"It's over," Yuji said as a spell insignia spilled out of Gaia's chest and orbited her. "Give up."

"I cannot do that," Gaia said as she blew him back with a strong wind. But the Mystes had already activated the failsafe within her, and the Hand of Eden returned to her earlier size. Her immortality as a Crimson God had also vanished.

The elements within the area began to become less forceful and violent. Two spell insignias came out of Gaia and drifted into the sea and sky, while one more flew towards the island and entered Behemoth's vessel.

Khamsin suddenly felt his strength as a Flame Haze return and jumped up to his feet.

"Our power, it's returned," the Flame Haze said to his contractor.

"But my mother is still at half her power, and the Mystes of the Reiji Maigo is barely staying in the battle," Behemoth said.

"Then we must act quickly," Khamsin said. "I believe it is time we used _that_ power."

He clenched his fists and breathed deeply. With is contractor's power, he brought the land he stood on up in the air. The ground shook as other boulders and platforms of earth followed him up t the same time.

As the Flame Haze raced to aid his ally, Gaia managed to hit the Mystes with a heavy stream of green lightning, released from one hand. In the other, she built up a green fireball and hurled it, bringing down the Mystes with a direct hit.

Before Yuji hit the water, a flying platform of earth caught him. He struggled to look up to see many other rocks and platforms surrounding the Hand of Eden, with Khamsin standing on top one of them.

"It's time we ended this," the Flame Haze said.

"Forgive us mother," Behemoth said, "we must hold to what we believe in."

Gaia looked at him sadly. "Very well," she said.

She threw a ball of fire at Khamsin, who leapt off his platform and over Gaia. The Hand of Eden shot a bolt of lightning at him, but Khamsin had managed to call a stone before him to use as a shield in time, and then shot it at his foe.

Gaia sliced the stone in half, and then whirled around to slash at Khamsin as he landed on the platform behind her. The Flame Haze avoided the attack by turning the platform upside-down, along with him. He dropped down to a lower platform and telekinetically directed several boulders in Gaia's direction.

The Hand of Eden held up her hands and stopped the rocks with the same technique before hurling them back at Khamsin. The Flame Haze reached out with his power and telekinetically crushed the boulders into smaller rocks. He then sent them back at Gaia.

Gaia countered by unleashing a blast of wind that blew all the stones away while at the same time, trying to knock Khamsin back. Khamsin brought the platform at his feet up towards the wind. For a brief moment, he glanced towards a recovering Yuji and nodded at him. As the wind passed by his firm defense, he shot his platform at Gaia, who destroyed it easily.

Hovering in the air, Khamsin called together all of the levitating stones and platforms of earth to him.

"So you intend to use Behemoth's most powerful attack," Gaia said. "Have you forgotten who you are dealing with?"

"No, I haven't," Khamsin said, looking past Gaia's shoulder.

Yuji suddenly appeared behind Gaia and held her from behind. "Whatever you're planning, do it now!" he yelled.

"Great beast of earth, guardian of the land, lend me your strength," Khamsin said aloud as the chunks of soil and stone revolved around him. "Manifest your power in this world through me, mighty Behemoth!"

"Earth Sunder!" Behemoth cried, summoning an ability similar to Marcosias' Flame of Illusion.

All of the stones around the Flame Haze covered him and merged together into a gigantic mammoth made of stone. Its hide was covered in fire, and its eyes blazed as well. Its tusks were long, sharp and hard, and ready to shatter anything in its way.

The mammoth charged through the air towards Gaia and Yuji. At the last split-second, the latter released his hold and flew out of harms way in the blink of an eye. To ensure that Gaia would not escape as well, the Mystes stunned her with a fireball as he evaded.

The flying earth mammoth delivered a direct hit to Gaia, and kept on charging. With the Hand of Eden on its tusks, it plunged head on into a hill on the nearby island with a resounding boom.

Some distance away, Leanan-sidhe felt the ground shake beneath her and turned to where the mammoth hit.

"Khamsin!" she gasped before leaving a recovering Shana and Hecate and running towards the Flame Haze.

In a deep, wide crater, made from the forceful impact of his own attack, Khamsin struggled to pick himself up. He was breathing heavily and clutched his aching body. His clothes were gone for the most part, and he was covered in bruises and cuts. Before him lay a severely hurt Gaia.

"It appears that I am defeated," she said with a small smile on her lips.

"I'm sorry it had to turn out this way," Behemoth said through his bracelet vessel, which remained intact on Khamsin's wrist.

"There is no need to apologize," Gaia said. "You have passed the test and proven your strength. The power of friendship truly is something very great. I entrust the fate of the planet to you and your allies."

"Mother," Behemoth said.

As Gaia spoke the last few words, she merged her ailing body with the ground beneath her. While she vanished, the once violent elements in the area stabilized. The sea and winds calmed, and the thick dark clouds broke.

"I will always be watching you," Gaia's voice said through the air itself. Her spirit had become one with the Earth once more.

Khamsin felt a presence and turned to see Leanan-sidhe smiling at him. He grinned slightly in return.

A moment later, Yuji flew down to Khamsin and lent him his long gray coat to cover himself up with.

"You came just in time to help us," Khamsin said to the Mystes as he put on the coat. "Thank you."

"It was nothing really, you're our friend," Yuji said. "And if it weren't for Leanan-sidhe-san and Hecate's coordinated teleportation spells, we wouldn't have been able to get from Japan to the other side of the world so quickly."

Shana and Hecate climbed up to join with them. The former carried a lance in her hand.

"I found this on the shoreline," she said.

"I sense more than one soul present inside it," said Hecate.

Khamsin took the lance from Shana and held it with both hands.

"It's Leviathan, his daughter and another, probably the mother, whom I heard was the Mystes that once carried this Hougu," Behemoth said. "The dream of that family was so strong that it bound them together into this weapon."

"At least they're together again," Leanan-sidhe said.

"Are you planning on keeping it?" Shana asked.

"This was your operation to begin with, so it's your decision," Yuji added.

"Their spirits are at ease together," Khamsin said. "We shouldn't disturb them with anymore violence. We're leaving it."

"You've changed from the last time we saw you," Hecate said, speaking for herself, Shana and Yuji. "You have never been this empathic. And you seem a lot stronger than before."

"Even you were able to change, right?" Khamsin replied. He glanced at Leanan-sidhe. "I only needed a reason to as well."

With those words, he tossed the lance far into the sea before him. As soon as Yuji recovered everyone's energy with the Reiji Maigo at midnight, the group departed the island by air and headed home.

* * *

Hope you liked it! The story continues in _Shakugan no Shana: Eternal Destiny._

Please review!_  
_


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